Boise VA Medical Center

Research

VA Research – Improving Veterans’ Lives

Areas of investigation at the BVAMC have included aging, clinical pharmacology, neuro-pharmacology, cardiovascular pharmacology, pulmonary physiology and pharmacology, immuno-pharmacology, infectious disease, psychology and psychiatry, and medical education.

The research and development program increases the BVAMC’s capacity to deliver advanced medical therapies and treatments to its Veteran patients.

The Boise VA Medical Center partners with Idaho Veterans Research and Education Foundation (IVREF), a nonprofit corporation located on the Boise VA campus, to expand research capability in Idaho. Please visit the IVREF website to learn more: ivref.org.

Researcher Profiles, Basic Science

Dennis L. Stevens, M.D., Ph.D.

Dr. Stevens is Program Director of the Center of Biomedical Research Excellence (COBRE) at Idaho Veterans Research & Education Foundation (IVREF). He is the former Chief of Infectious Diseases at the Boise VA Medical Center, and Professor of Medicine at University of Washington Department of Medicine.

Dr. Stevens’ research in infectious disease pathogenesis is world-renowned; for the past 35 years, he has investigated the role of extracellular toxins of gram-positive microbes in the pathogenesis of severe infection. His laboratories have had success in the identification, isolation and characterization of the mechanisms of action of protein toxins from Group A Streptococcus, Clostridium perfringens, C. sordellii, C. septicum and Staphylococcus aureus. His lab has also developed recombinant toxins, monoclonal antibodies against these toxins, and has generated strains of these pathogens which no longer express these toxins.

Devin D. Bolz, Ph.D.

Dr. Bolz is an Assistant Research Scientist at the Boise VA Medical Center, and Adjunct Professor of Biological Sciences for Boise State University.  He has over ten years of experience investigating the impact of the innate immune response on pathogen burden, development of pathology and host survival during bacterial infection. His current research focuses on defining key molecular events in the pathogenesis of Staphylococcus aureus and other drug-resistant bacterial pathogens, and improving our understanding of how bacteria regulate the expression of virulence factors, including exotoxins. The aim of these studies is to define networks that can be exploited for improved diagnostics and innovative intervention strategies to reduce disease incidence and provide protection against lethal and disabling infections.

Sarah E. Hobdey, Ph.D.

Dr. Hobdey is an Assistant Research Scientist at the Boise VA Medical Center. With a background in protein biochemistry and molecular biology, she has developed expertise in protein expression, purification and structure-function characterization for application to diverse scientific disciplines. Her current research is centered on bacterial toxin production related to current antibiotic treatments. This research explores the possibilities of novel therapies for the treatment of toxic bacterial infections utilizing adaptive immunity-derived neutralizing antibodies in conjunction with traditional antibiotics.


Mary Cloud Ammons, Ph.D.

Dr. Ammons is an Assistant Research Scientist of Infectious Diseases at the Boise VA Medical Center. Her long-term career objective is to pursue a research program that seeks to solve the many unknowns of the host innate immune cell interaction with opportunistic microbial biofilms. Having completed doctoral studies in regulatory molecular mechanisms of phagocytic cells and postdoctoral studies in developing novel, metabolically-disrupting, biofilm-targeted antimicrobials, she is uniquely positioned to apply metabolomic techniques to elucidate these issues. Her research specifically targets development of better treatment protocols to promote healing in the chronic wounds afflicting our Veteran population.

Jay R. Radke, Ph.D.

Dr. Radke is an Assistant Research Scientist of Infectious Diseases at the Boise VA Medical Center. His research is focused on understanding how two human adenovirus (Ad) genes (E1A and E1B) modulate both the host innate immune response and cell death pathways. The ultimate goal of his research is to develop novel treatments for virus induced acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and for improving the efficacy of oncolytic adenoviruses for treating cancer.

Cheri Lamb McFarlane, PhD

Dr. Lamb is an Assistant Research Scientist I and is the recipient of a NIH NIGMS COBRE Pilot Research Project. She is researching the potential of a macrophage-based therapeutic antibody delivery system based on passive immunotherapy using antigen-specific monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) to neutralize bacterial virulence and utilize the host immune response as a substitute for the use of antibiotics.

Sumiko Gomi, PhD

Dr. Gomi is an Assistant Research Scientist I and is the recipient of a NIH NIGMS COBRE Pilot Research Project. She is researching differences in intestinal microbiota following influenza-methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) co-infection and antiviral therapy to identify protective commensal bacteria that may be of use as specific probiotic therapies for MRSA infections. She is also examining the innate and adaptive immune responses for better understanding of the interaction between microbe and the immune system.

Researcher Profiles, Clinical Research

Margaret Doucette, D.O.

Dr. Doucette is Chief of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at the Boise VA Medical Center.  Because a large percentage of the hospital patient population is diabetic, Dr. Doucette remains on the cutting edge of wound treatment and pressure ulcer innovations.  She recently wrote an article on the use of new wireless technologies to improve patient turning compliance and reduce incidence of pressure ulcers.  Dr. Doucette’s current clinical research explores the use of amniotic tissue patches as a therapy for chronic wound healing in patients at high risk for amputation. 

Karl Madaras-Kelly, PharmD, MPH

Dr. Madaras-Kelly is a Clinical Pharmacist at the BVAMC and is also a Professor of Pharmacy Practice in the College of Pharmacy at Idaho State University-Meridian. Dr. Madaras-Kelly is active in clinical infectious disease and research programs at the BVAMC and has obtained more than $1.5 million in grant funding from the VHA, NIH, and CDC, as well as from pharmacy professional societies and pharmaceutical companies. He has presented and published his research extensively; his primary research interests include antibiotic stewardship, health systems research, epidemiology and clinical outcomes of infectious disease treatments. Dr. Madaras-Kelly serves as a mentor for pharmacy residents and students on adult medicine and infectious diseases rotations at the BVAMC.

Dr. Madaras-Kelly has been a recipient of the American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP) Fellowship award in infectious diseases, the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP) Young Investigator Award, and the Society of Infectious Diseases Pharmacists (SIDP) Young Investigator Award. Dr. Madaras-Kelly was previously selected as Teacher of the Year and Most Influential Professor by four-year Doctor of Pharmacy students at ISU-Meridian.

He is also an active member of the Society of Infectious Diseases Pharmacists (SIDP), and a member of the Infectious Diseases Society of America and the Society for Health Care Epidemiology.

Fred Bauer, MD

Dr. Bauer is the COBRE Histology/Pathology/Immunology Core (HPIC) Director. Dr. Bauer’s decades-long career in Anatomic and Clinical Pathology has focused on the diagnosis, assessment, treatment, and prevention of human disease through classical and advanced biochemical analyses of body fluids and histological study of pathology specimens.

Leigh Smithkors, PhD

Dr. Smithkors is a psychologist at the Caldwell, Idaho, Community Based Outpatient Clinic of the BVAMC. Dr. Smithkors’ research interests include the assessment and modeling of personality traits, and the efficacy of the suicide prevention programs at the BVAMC. Her clinical interests include assessment, group therapy and third-wave behavioral therapies.

Jeff Sordahl, PsyD, ABPP-CN

Dr. Sordahl is a Neuropsychologist and the VISN 20 Clinical Resource Hub Primary Care Mental Health Integration (PCMHI) Program Manager. Dr. Sordahl’s primary clinical, research, and training interests include neuropsychology, Telehealth, rural health, and integrated care. Dr. Sordahl is an active member of the National Academy of 14 Neuropsychology (NAN), American Academy of Clinical Neuropsychology (AACN), and Division 40 of the APA.

Mark B. Warren, MD

Dr. Warren is a psychiatrist and Clinical Assistant Professor and Research Director, University of Washington – Idaho Psychiatry Advanced Clinician Track at the BVAMC. Dr. Warren’s areas of interest and research are suicidology, lifestyle psychiatry, and integrated care.

Idaho Veterans Research and Education Foundation (IVREF)

The Boise VA Medical Center, Research Department is also affiliated with the Idaho Veterans Research and Education Foundation. To learn more about the IVREF go to their website by clicking here.